Based on Acts 26:1-23 (New King James Version)
“Then Agrippa said to Paul, ‘You are permitted to speak for yourself.’ So Paul stretched out his hand and answered for himself: ‘I think myself happy, King Agrippa, because today I shall answer for myself before you concerning all the things of which I am accused by the Jews, especially because you are expert in all customs and questions which have to do with the Jews. Therefore I beg you to hear me patiently. ‘My manner of life from my youth, which was spent from the beginning among my own nation at Jerusalem, all the Jews know. They knew me from the first, if they were willing to testify, that according to the strictest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee. And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers. To this promise our twelve tribes, earnestly serving God night and day, hope to attain. For this hope’s sake, King Agrippa, I am accused by the Jews. Why should it be thought incredible by you that God raises the dead? ‘Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. This I also did in Jerusalem, and many of the saints I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities. ‘While thus occupied, as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, at midday, O king, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ So I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’ ‘Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance. For these reasons the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. Therefore, having obtained help from God, to this day I stand, witnessing both to small and great, saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come—that the Christ would suffer, that He would be the first to rise from the dead, and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”
One of the most fundamental or important things to understand is that all of us who have decided to follow Christ as Lord began as something completely different. And this is extremely important to understand because this is what God desires to accomplish in our lives. This is precisely what the new birth or new beginning the Lord speaks of in the Gospel of John is all about. We all begin as something different, in one way or another, before knowing Christ. God rescued all of us who follow Him from a past life that bears no resemblance to the life we live now, as Paul himself recounted in this passage. This is what the following passage is about: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17.
Someone who hasn't experienced this might think: How can something like this happen, like what happened in the life of the Apostle Paul? How can a person change so much, from starting on one side of the spectrum to ending up on the opposite side? And they might also wonder, especially many so-called believers: “Does this only happen to the elect, or can it happen to anyone?” And these questions can be answered through the Word. What happened in Paul's life happened through the divine intervention of the Lord. The Lord Jesus Christ appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus, where Paul (formerly called Saul) was focused on continuing to persecute the church. Now, was it just the appearance of the Lord that did it all? I think something was already happening in Paul's life, even though he was still focused on persecuting the church. The death of the saints must have done something to him, like the death of Stephen, and that is why there is such an emphasis or detailed account of the story of how Stephen preached, and even how he saw heaven opened before him, where he could see the Lord Himself at the right hand of the throne of God, as the Scripture says: “But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, ‘Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!’ Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.” Acts 8:55-58. Who else could have recounted this moment to Luke, the writer of the book of Acts, the most faithful companion Paul had, even in prison? Stephen's testimony didn't lead Paul to conversion, but it must have done something within him. And of course, the encounter with the Lord was the main and culminating event. But knowing how the Holy Spirit works, wasn't it the same Lord who worked in Stephen's death as in His own appearance? And this leads us to answer the other question, whether this type of conversion only happens to select individuals. And the point is that the Lord calls us all equally, and in different ways. It may not be like a light that is so bright that it knocked Paul off his horse and left him blind. But also, isn't the dawning of the bright sun seen every morning in every part of this world, all by the design and will of God, daily showing man the magnificence of the Most High? As it is written: “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.” Romans 1:20. So, we can conclude that God calls everyone to this great transformation. The issue is whether they want to follow or decide to obey such a call.
So, what does a person need to be able to have such an encounter and such a transformation? What did Paul do when Christ spoke to him? He genuinely recognized Him as Lord and decided to obey His call. When a person repents of all their sins (as Paul did because of a total change of life), and submits to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, everything changes. It's not about being perfect or understanding everything, but more so, about seeking to follow and do the will of the Lord. This is the whole point: Do you listen to God when He speaks to you through His Word, and as He daily demonstrates all His greatness and love through His creation and the cross of Christ? Have you decided to follow Christ as the literal and effective Lord of your life, without reservation? Lord bless! John. God bless Israel!